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Rolling Over Beethoven

P eople in the music business have been badmouthing the New York Philharmonic. And why? Because the orchestra played all nine Beethoven symphonies at special concerts at the start of its new season.

That, I've been told, is "unimaginative programming." It's a cynical ploy to sell tickets, by turning the Philharmonic into the classical equivalent of a top-40 radio station. The public, however, either...